Microsoft drops “Metro” term, replaces with “Windows 8” (video)

PanARMENIAN.Net - Microsoft has dropped Metro design name from its Windows 8 operating system and has decided to replace the term with the operating system's own name, Digital Spy said.

According to a report on ZDNet, Windows 8 will officially replace Metro in all references to the operating system.

This means that what was formerly called the "Metro style user interface" will now be the "Windows 8 user interface" and that "Metro style applications" will become "Windows 8 applications."

Last week a leaked internal memo from Microsoft revealed that the company would discontinue the Metro name due to "discussions with an important European partner".

The term Windows 8 is said to apply to all devices that used the Metro terminology, including Windows Phone 8, Windows RT tablets, and possibly Xbox 360 which has been referred to as a Metro-style interface by Microsoft in the past.

This comes shortly after Microsoft releases the complete version of Windows 8 to manufacturers, ahead of the consumer launch on October 26.

The company has high hopes that its new operating system will stimulate the global PC market, and enable it to claw back ground from rivals Apple and Google in the market for touchscreen computing devices.

However, the new OS was recently branded a "catastrophe" by games maker Valve over concerns that the move to a Windows App Store format will harm "the openness of the platform".